Active clinical trials for "Movement Disorders"

The ultimate goal of this proposal is to reduce dyskinesia in Parkinson's Disease (PD) patients. Dyskinesias are abnormal movements, often caused by the standard treatment for PD symptoms, levodopa. In this study, we will test if biochemical devices are equal to the clinical rating system in measuring dyskinesias.

This study will examine whether biofeedback treatment is effective in lessening or stopping movement symptoms in people with psychogenic movement disorder. People with this condition have increased or decreased movements that are not under their control and are not associated with any know problem with the nervous system. Biofeedback is a type of therapy that uses electronic instruments to monitor breathing and heart rate. This treatment has been effective in patients with anxiety and panic attacks. People 18 years of age and older diagnosed with psychogenic movement disorder may be eligible for this study. Candidates are screened with a neurological history, physical examination and psychiatric evaluation. Participants come to the NIH Clinical Center for nine 1-hour test sessions over an 8-week period for the following procedures: Week 1 (two visits): Patients' movements are videotaped while they sit, stand and walk. Patients train on RESPeRATE device, a computerized musical biofeedback device to help slow theirs breathing rate. The device has three components: a computerized module, earphones, and a chest strap holding a breath sensor. The patients put the elastic strap around their chest, put on the earphones, and sit in a chair. The device monitors and analyzes their breathing to create a melody composed of two distinct tones - one for inhalation and one for exhalation. Patients are instructed to match their breathing to the tones, which gradually slow until they are breathing at a slower, therapeutic rate. Patients' breathing is monitored and analyzed for information on breathing pattern and rate. Patients complete questionnaires on level of relaxation before and after RESPeRATE training. Patients take the RESPeRATE device home to use for two 10-minute practice sessions per day. They complete relaxation questionnaires before and after each session. Weeks 2-7: Patients' progress is monitored and reviewed from the previous week Patients' breathing is monitored and analyzed for information on breathing pattern and rate. Patients complete questionnaires on level of relaxation before and after RESPeRATE training. Patients are observed for 10 minutes while using the RESPeRATE device. Week 8: Patients' progress is monitored and reviewed from the previous week Patients' breathing is monitored and analyzed for information on breathing pattern and rate. Patients complete questionnaires on level o...

Background: - Parkinson s disease (PD) affects half a million Americans, causing slow movements, tremors, stiffness, and trouble walking. Currently, these symptoms are measured by physical exam, but this is unreliable and requires an office visit. Researchers want to study a different way to measure PD symptoms, using a home-testing machine called a QMAT device. It can test how quickly someone moves doing different tasks. Researchers will study how this testing compares to physical exam testing and whether the device can detect changes in PD symptoms over time. Objectives: - To see if a home testing device can be used to evaluate Parkinson s disease symptoms. Eligibility: - Adults at least 18 years old with PD. Design: Participants will have about 22 clinic visits over 5 years. Each visit will take up to 3 hours. Visits will be scheduled along with visits for another study. At visit 1, participants will learn to use the QMAT device and how to send testing information to the clinic by computer. The device has a computer screen, some buttons, and some pegs. Participants will get a device to take home and any accessories. Participants will learn 2 QMAT tests. For one, they will press keys as fast as possible. For the other, they will move pegs into holes. The tests will take a total of about 20 minutes. Participants will take both tests at home, 2 times on the same day each week, once before their medication, once after. A study coordinator will monitor the participant s computer data and discuss the at-home testing at the clinic visits.

Background: - New studies in human genetics have revealed information about genetic connections to memory and motor behavior. Researchers are interested in investigating the role of genetics in motor learning, in conjunction with related studies taking place in the Human Motor Control Section of the National Institute of Neurological Diseases and Stroke (NINDS). Participants in motor learning studies conducted at NINDS will be asked to provide blood samples for further evaluation. Objectives: - To create a repository of blood samples from patients and healthy subjects who are participating in NINDS motor learning studies. Eligibility: - Individuals between 18 and 100 years of age who are or will be participating in motor learning research studies at the National Institutes of Health. Design: Blood draws for genetic testing will usually be done on the same day as the motor learning study. Participants will provide one blood sample for research. No treatment will be provided under this study....

Deep brain stimulation is commonly used for the treatment of movement disorders. Electrode positioning is usually performed under local anesthesia in fully awake patients. The procedure is uncomfortable to the patients who has to remain motionless during the whole surgery. Previous reports of electrode positioning under general anesthesia was found to be less accurate. This result was probably due to the effect of the anesthetics on the electrical activity of the basal ganglia. The purpose of this study is to detect possible changes in the electrical activity of the basal ganglia related to remifentanil sedation. electrical activity of single neurons will be recorded before, during and after sedation.

This observational and experimental study seeks to establish a Smart Device System (SDS) to monitor high-resolution handtremor-based data using Smartphones, SmartWatches and Tablets. By doing this, movement data will be analyzed in depth with advanced statistical and Deep-Learning algorithms to identify new clinical phenotypical characteristics Parkinson's Disease and Essential Tremor.

Falls are one of the most common reasons for immobilisation and death in elderly population. This study aims at studying falls among a group of older people. The aim is to study the relation between movement patterns, balance performance, inner ear function and future falls. Senior member will be recruited through the non-profit association "Friskis&Svettis. Measures of movement patterns, balance performance and innear ear function will be measured at baseline. Falls will be monitored through falls diaries, collected every third month during a 12 month period.

This study will examine the prevalence of four previously identified non-motor markers in a population of cervical dystonia patients, unaffected family members, and healthy volunteers in an attempt to identify a distinct combination of non-motor symptoms that may be indicative of disease development.

Diagnosing Parkinson's disease (PD) depends on the clinical history of the patient and the patient's response to specific treatments such as levodopa. Unfortunately, a definitive diagnosis of PD is still limited to post-mortem evaluation of brain tissues. Furthermore, diagnosis of idiopathic PD is even more challenging because symptoms of PD overlap with symptoms of other conditions such as essential tremor (ET) or Parkinsonian syndromes (PSs) such as progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP), multiple system atrophy (MSA), corticobasal degeneration (CBD), or vascular Parkinsonism (VaP). Based on the principle that PD and PSs affect brain areas involved in eye movement control, this trial will utilize a platform that records complex eye movements and use a proprietary algorithm to characterize PSs. Preliminary data demonstrate that by monitoring oculomotor alterations, the process can assign PD-specific oculomotor patterns, which have the potential to serve as a diagnostic tool for PD. This study will evaluate capabilities of the process and its ability to differentiate PD from other PSs with statistical significance. The specific aims of this proposal are: To optimize the detection and analysis algorithms, and then to evaluate the process against neurological diagnoses of PD patients in a clinical study.

This study will use functional MRI (fMRI, a technique that shows what areas of the brain are active when performing different mental tasks), to examine how the brain in people with functional movement disorders (FMD) may differ from that in people without FMDs. People with FMD have movement symptoms they feel they cannot control and that are not due to a known medical disorder. Previous studies looking at the brain activity of FMD patients have found areas in the frontal lobe of the brain that appeared overactive. These overactive areas may make it difficult to perform complex mental tasks. Studying the brain during performance of these tasks may enhance knowledge about FMD. Patients 18 years of age or older with an FMD and healthy normal volunteers may be eligible for this study. Participants have two visits to the NIH Clinical Center for the following procedures: First visit (screening): Medical history and neurological examination. Urine drug screen for illicit drugs. Psychological testing, including an interview and questionnaires. Second visit: Brain MRI (if one has not been done at NIH within the past 12 months): MRI uses a magnetic field and radio waves to produce images of body tissues and organs. The subject lies on a table that can slide in and out of the scanner (a narrow cylinder), wearing earplugs to muffle loud noises that occur during the scanning process. The procedure lasts about 2 hours, during which time the patient is asked to lie still for up to 30 minutes at a time. Brain fMRI: While in the MRI scanner, subjects read questions and answer them yes or no by pushing buttons. They are asked to answer questions about their health, their movement symptoms and unrelated topics (like personal preferences and current events). The questions vary in difficulty. Sometimes subjects are instructed to answer correctly; other times they are asked to answer incorrectly. A strap is placed around the subject's chest and two wires are taped to the fingers to monitor heart rate, breathing rate and sweat response during the scan. The scan takes about 2 hours.